This invention relates to thermal barrier coatings for components exposed to high temperatures, such as the hostile thermal environment of a gas turbine engine. More particularly, this invention is directed to a method for repairing a thermal barrier coating that has suffered localized spallation.
Higher operating temperatures for gas turbine engines are continuously sought in order to increase their efficiency. However, as operating temperatures increase, the high temperature durability of the components of the engine must correspondingly increase. Significant advances in high temperature capabilities have been achieved through the formulation of nickel and cobalt-base superalloys. Nonetheless, when used to form components of the turbine, combustor and augmentor sections of a gas turbine engine, such alloys alone are often susceptible to damage by oxidation and hot corrosion attack and may not retain adequate mechanical properties. For this reason, these components are often protected by an environmental and/or thermal-insulating coating, the latter of which is termed a thermal barrier coating (TBC) system. Ceramic materials and particularly yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) are widely used as a thermal barrier coating (TBC), or topcoat, of TBC systems used on gas turbine engine components. These particular materials are widely employed because they can be readily deposited by plasma spray, flame spray and vapor deposition techniques.
To be effective, TBC systems must have low thermal conductivity, strongly adhere to the component, and remain adherent throughout many heating and cooling cycles. The latter requirement is particularly demanding due to the different coefficients of thermal expansion between ceramic topcoat materials and the superalloy substrates they protect. To promote adhesion and extend the service life of a TBC system, an oxidation-resistant bond coat is often employed. Bond coats are typically in the form of overlay coatings such as MCrAlX (where M is iron, cobalt and/or nickel, and X is yttrium or another rare earth element), or diffusion aluminide coatings. During the deposition of the ceramic TBC and subsequent exposures to high temperatures, such as during engine operation, these bond coats form a tightly adherent alumina (Al2O3) layer or scale that adheres the TBC to the bond coat.
The service life of a TBC system is typically limited by a spallation event brought on by thermal fatigue. Accordingly, a significant challenge of TBC systems has been to obtain a more adherent ceramic layer that is less susceptible to spalling when subjected to thermal cycling. Though significant advances have been made, there is the inevitable requirement to repair components whose thermal barrier coatings have spalled. Though spallation typically occurs in localized regions or patches, the conventional repair method has been to completely remove the thermal barrier coating, restore or repair the bond layer surface as necessary, and then recoat the entire component. Prior art techniques for removing TBC""s include grit blasting or chemically stripping with an alkaline solution at high temperatures and pressures. However, grit blasting is a slow, labor-intensive process and erodes the surface beneath the coating. With repetitive use, the grit blasting process eventually destroys the component. The use of an alkaline solution to remove a thermal barrier coating is also less than ideal, since the process requires the use of an autoclave operating at high temperatures and pressures. Consequently, conventional repair methods are labor-intensive and expensive, and can be difficult to perform on components with complex geometries, such as airfoils and shrouds. As an alternative, U.S. Pat. No. 5,723,078 to Nagaraj et al. teach selectively repairing a spalled region of a TBC by texturing the exposed surface of the bond coat, and then depositing a ceramic material on the textured surface by plasma spraying. While avoiding the necessity to strip the entire TBC from a component, the repair method taught by Nagaraj et al. requires removal of the component in order to deposit the ceramic material.
In the case of large power generation turbines, completely halting power generation for an extended period in order to remove components whose TBC""s have suffered only localized spallation is not economically desirable. As a result, components identified as having spalled TBC are often analyzed to determine whether the spallation has occurred in a high stress area, and a judgment is then made as to the risk of damage to the turbine due to the reduced thermal protection of the component, which if excessive can lead to catastrophic failure of the component. If the decision is to continue operation, the spalled component must typically be scrapped at the end of operation because of the thermal damage inflicted while operating the component without complete TBC coverage.
Accordingly, it would be desirable if a repair method were available that could be performed on localized spalled areas of TBC on turbine hardware without necessitating that the component be removed from the turbine, so that downtime and scrappage are minimized.
The present invention provides a method of repairing a thermal barrier coating on a component that has suffered localized spallation of the thermal barrier coating. After cleaning the surface area of the component exposed by the localized spallation, a ceramic paste comprising a ceramic powder in a binder is applied to the surface area of the component. The binder is then reacted to yield a ceramic-containing repair coating that covers the surface area of the component and comprises the ceramic powder in a matrix of a material formed when the binder was reacted. The binder is preferably a ceramic precursor material that can be converted immediately to a ceramic or allowed to thermally decompose over time to form a ceramic, such that the repair coating has a ceramic matrix. According to the invention, each step of the repair method can be performed while the component remains installed, e.g., in a gas turbine engine. Immediately after the reaction step, the gas turbine engine can resume operation to further react/convert the binder, by which the strength of the repair coating increases.
In view of the above, it can be appreciated that the invention overcomes several disadvantages of prior methods used to repair thermal barrier coatings. In particular, the method of this invention does not require the thermal barrier coating to be completely removed, nor does the invention require removal of the component in order to repair its thermal barrier coating. As a further advantage, the repair process does not require a high temperature treatment, since the repair coating exhibits sufficient strength to withstand engine operation, during which time the precursor binder is gradually converted to form a ceramic matrix. As a result, minimal downtime is necessary to complete the repair and resume operation of the turbine engine. In the case of large power generation turbines, the cost is avoided of completely halting power generation for an extended period in order to remove, repair and then reinstall a component that has suffered only localized spallation. Also avoided is the need to decide whether or not to continue operation of the turbine until the spalled component is no longer salvageable at the risk of damaging the turbine.
Other objects and advantages of this invention will be better appreciated from the following detailed description.